(a) When the owner of a property within a preservation district proposes new construction or alteration to any portion of a structure within the district he or she shall first apply for and secure a certificate of appropriateness from the Design Review Board. The application for a certificate shall be made with the Building Official, together with such plans, specifications, and other material as the Design Review Board may from time to time prescribe.
(b) Within forty-five days of filing, the Design Review Board shall consider the applications, plans, and specifications.
(c) If the proposed alteration is determined to have no adverse effect by the Design Review Board on the preservation district, and does not violate the spirit and purpose of these regulations, then the Board Secretary shall issue the certificate of appropriateness.
(d) If the Design Review Board determines that the proposed alteration will have an adverse effect on the preservation district, and does violate the spirit and purposes of these regulations, then the Board shall deny issuance of the certificate of appropriateness.
(e) In the event that the Design Review Board determines within the forty-five day review period that a certificate of appropriateness shall not be issued, it shall forthwith state in its records reasons for such determination and may include recommendations respecting the proposed construction, reconstruction, alteration, or demolition of any area, place, building, structure, site, object, or work of art. The Secretary of the Board shall forthwith notify the applicant and the Engineering Department of such determination and transmit to him/her a certified copy of the reasons for denial and recommendations, if any, of the Board.
(f) Upon denying a certificate of appropriateness, the Board shall impose a waiting period of at least thirty days, but not to exceed six months from the date of disapproval, during which time the Board shall negotiate with the owner of the property in order to develop a compromise proposal acceptable to both. The first meeting between Board and applicant shall be held within thirty days from the date of disapproval. If a compromise proposal is accepted by both parties, the Board may henceforth issue a certificate of appropriateness.
(g) In the case of denial of a certificate of appropriateness for demolition:
(1) The Board and applicant shall undertake meaningful and continuing discussion during the waiting period in order to find a means of preserving the property. The Board and applicant shall investigate the feasibility of all means of preserving the listed property. If the Board and applicant do not agree on a means of preserving the structure at the initial meeting, then they must continue to undertake meaningful and continuing discussions for the purpose of finding a method of saving the structure, and such good faith meetings shall be held at least every forty-five days after the initial meeting.
(2) If the applicant fails to meet with the Board in good faith, at the time specified, then the Board denial of the application will stand.
(3) If, after holding such good faith meeting in the waiting period specified by the Board, the Board determines that failure to issue a certificate of appropriateness will create a substantial hardship to the applicant and that such certificate may be issued without substantial detriment to the public welfare and without substantial deviation from the purposes of this chapter, then and in such event, the Secretary of the Board shall issue a certificate of appropriateness for such.
(4) If, after holding such good faith meetings in the waiting period specified by the Board, no alternative solution to incompatible construction, reconstruction, or alteration is reached then the applicant may appeal the decision.
(Ord. 2017-13R. Passed 5-1-17.)